The Viewer Journey: Navigating Streaming Options

Description

SYNOPSIS:

This report examines the viewer journey for accessing desired video content across broadcast, traditional pay-TV and the many over-the-top (OTT) streaming video service models, including SVOD, AVOD/FAST, TVOD and vMVPD (streaming TV) services. Included is research that analyzes how households view content, how households prioritize and spend money, and how decisions are made to pay for some services over others. This study draws from Parks Associates' Q3 2023 survey of 8,000 U.S. internet households. The survey is demographically representative of US internet households, with quotas for age, income, gender, and educational attainment.

SAMPLE VIEW

Key questions addressed:

1) How are households signing up for their streaming subscriptions? Why do households subscribe to certain services over others?

2) On what devices do households consume video, and what type of services do households watch on various device?

3) When viewers first sit to find something to watch, what steps do they take?

4) How does the viewer journey differ when a household wants to watch a TV show or movie versus live sports or news?

5) How easy or hard is it for households to find something to watch? What is the discovery experience like?

ANALYST INSIGHT:

"The viewer journey continues to evolve. A once manageable process of watching video curated from a single source is now a source of frustration due to an overwhelming amount of content from which to choose, spread out across numerous services and platforms, and ever changing." - Sarah Lee, Research Analyst, Parks Associates.

Survey Methodology and Definitions

Key Terms and Definitions
Pay-TV Definitions and Categorization
Video Services Ecosystem

Executive Summary

Reasons for Using OTT Service
Reasons for Using a Service by Top Services
Video Consumption on All Devices
Method to Find Video Contents to Watch
Discovery Method of Watching Video Contents
Monthly Spending by Agreement Towards Streaming Attitudes
Average Among OTT Subscribers
OTT Churn by Streaming Experience

Overall Outlook: Streaming Adoption

Penetration of Traditional vs. OTT Video Services
Pay-TV & OTT Service Subscription Trend
Pay-TV* and OTT Service Subscription Mix
Number of OTT Service Subscriptions
Average Number of OTT Service Subscriptions
Number of OTT Service Subscriptions by Income
Number of OTT Service Subscriptions by Children at Home
Avg Number of OTT Services Across Business Models
Major OTT Subscription Tier
Platforms for Watching Social/User Generated Content
Method of Subscribing to vMVPD Services
Method of Subscribing to OTT Services
Method of Subscribing Streaming TV Services by Services

Viewing Consumption: Devices and Services

Reasons for Using OTT Service
Reasons for Using a Service by Top Services
Reasons for Using a Service by Other OTT Services
Use of Devices for Video of Any Kind in the Past 30 Days
Use of Devices for Video in the Past 30 Days by Age Groups
Total Average Video Consumption by Platforms
Video Consumption on All Devices
Video Consumption on TV Set
Video Consumption on a Mobile Phone
Video Consumption on Tablet
Video Consumption on Computer
Genres of Online Content Viewed

First Choice and Steps

Viewing Path to Content To Video on a TV
First Choice for Watching TV and Movies on TV
First Choice for Watching Live Sports on TV
First Choice for Watching Live News on TV
First Step When Finding Something New to Watch
First Sources for Video Content on Connected TV Devices

Discovery and Experience

Method to Find Video Contents to Watch
Discovery Method of Watching Video Contents
Discovery Method of Watching Video Contents by First Sources for Video Contents
Monthly Spending by Agreement Towards Streaming Attitudes
Average Among OTT and vMVPD Subscribers
Viewing Experience with Ad-Based OTT Services
Viewing Experience with Live Sports Events

Churn

OTT Subscriber Churn
OTT Service Retention Incentives
OTT Churn by Streaming Experience